This blog posts a three to five minute homily ideas for Sundays readings.

Saturday, October 6, 2018

27th Sunday Ordinary Time Year B

Readings: Genesis 2:18-24; Hebrew 2:9-11;
Mark 10:2-16

This Sunday, the readings help
us to understand why Jesus teaches about marriage as a lifelong commitment. The
readings focus on Christian marriage as a permanent union in God's original
purpose. That sounds contradictory to the popular view of society. Marriage
today is described as a fragile institution in our society. Divorce rates today
are around 40% with divorce among Catholics reaching around 20%. In the Gospel,
the Pharisees test Jesus by asking whether it is lawful for a husband to
divorce his wife (“send her away”). Jesus responds by asking them about what
the law said, and they quote Deuteronomy 4:1), which allowed a husband to
divorce his wife by simply writing a bill of divorce. (cf Matt. 1:19). Then
Jesus responds by quoting two sayings from two creation accounts of Genesis:
“male and female he created them” (Gen 1:27), and “the two of them become one
flesh” (in today’s first reading). In this passage, the first century Jewish
law seems to have favored divorce, but in actual practice divorce was not that
common. Therefore, the point of Jesus in the Gospel is not so much an attack on
a widespread practice, but an affirmation of the life-long nature of marriage
as well as a prophetic challenge that refers to God’s creative purpose.

The first reading shows that
God established marriage at the beginning of creation for two essential
purposes: unity of the married couple (the two shall become one flesh) and their
mutual interdependence. In other words, neither man alone nor woman alone
contains the fullness of God’s creative design, but man and woman in union with
each other. Jesus therefore views marriage, in which man and woman are no
longer two but one, living in unity and interdependence, as a symbol of restored
creation. Therefore there is an integral connection between mutual love and
procreation in marriage. Under the new Law of love divorce destroys the
original purpose of God in creation: “the two become one flesh”. Marriage as a
permanent union is founded on the value of unity that continually offers
support to its permanence. This teaching on the permanent character of
Christian marriage is inspiring to some, while painful for others in today’s
society. There is no marriage without moments of tears. Differences, conflict
and misunderstanding will always be there. In a lasting marriage there are
always moments of self sacrifice for the other. At times there is frustration
and disappointment. At the end of the day what preserves the permanence of
marriage is the determination to stay together, “for better for worse.” The
very fact that some marriages manage to survive so many difficulties and rough
seas is a miracle only brought about by prayer and the willingness to forgive
and to be forgiven. What message do we take home? 1) Jesus teaches that marriage
is a permanent union in God's original purpose. 2) Marriage has a character of permanent
union precisely because it is founded on the value of unity: “the two become
one flesh”. 3) In the rocky moments married life what saves it is the desire to
nourish married life through prayer, mutual self-giving, forgiveness and
reconciliation. May we also remain close in prayer and support for members of
our parish who experience the pain of broken marriages and family life.